


Just Another Day

by Charlie Rotanev (Immerghensi)



Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Age Play, Age Play Little Son Hyunwoo | Shownu, Little Space, M/M, Non-Sexual Age Play
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-09
Updated: 2019-02-09
Packaged: 2019-10-24 06:08:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,047
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17699087
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Immerghensi/pseuds/Charlie%20Rotanev
Summary: Introducing, chaotic boy group Monsta X!





	Just Another Day

**Author's Note:**

  * For [dkhodges](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dkhodges/gifts).



> I've been looking forward to this one for a while. Go check out Destiny's page! 
> 
> Send me comments! They give me life!

They wait in the darkness, set in a line. The shadow of a hand comes down, counting them off with a familiar rhythm.

 

“Ready? 3...2…”

 

Lights blare in harsh bright white on the main stage. The hosts start up their usual banter, leading into their introduction. Minhyuk goes on first, followed by Wonho, followed by I.M, followed by Shownu. Jooheon nudges him in the back to tell him to move, come on Ki, what are you doing?, and he takes his place in front of the camera.

 

“Welcome back, you just had a successful comeback, is that right?”

 

“We have,” a voice says, surprisingly his own, “It’s a pleasure to be here.”

 

The pre-recorded sound of an audience dials down. It’s just another interview. They can do this.

 

He can do this.

**

Being on variety shows is like riding a bike except the bike is on fire and there’s a bear about 20 feet back and there may or may not be an invisible wall coming, who knows. They’re all standing with their faces in bowls of water, holding their breath, trying to yell numbers but not the same number and not at the same time before they're forced to come up for air. The prize is immunity from another challenge, and on a show like this, it’s worth it. Kihyun is trying his darndest to hold his breath for as long as possible when Minhyuk and Hyungwon come up at the same time and yell ‘FIVE’ simultaneously, even though Wonho had yelled ‘THREE’ maybe a second ago. They look at each other in disbelief, water streaming down their faces, and when Minhyuk brings his hand up to point at Hyungwon, when he opens his mouth to screech, the others jump into action. I.M and Kihyun spring up, hair whipping back and spraying the camera staff with water. Jooheon slips off his podium and accidentally knocks over his bowl. Like a Christmas miracle, Wonho flies in from offscreen. To put a stop to the chaos, Shownu scoops up Hyungwon while stiff-arming Minhyuk, the normalcy of the situation shown in his well-practiced motions. His expression doesn’t even change from 'mildly disappointed’. Minhyuk’s arms spin like a windmill, Hyungwon flailing with his feet off the ground, but eventually they stop and Shownu lets go.

 

“Wow, so strong…” the hosts say. One of them touches his arm, but when he feels the dense muscle under Shownu's shirt, he starts feeling around further. He brings the other host closer, and now they’re touching him and...it's weird.

Really weird.

There’s nothing anyone can do about it. He’s strong of course, but he’s strong in other ways too. His size is a charm point, for some obscure reason, and the more they talk about it the more Kihyun has to shuffle and laugh nervously to stop himself from yelling at them that they’re making him uncomfortable. With a quick glance down the line, he sees that Minhyuk is already looking at him with a similar expression. “Women must swoon over you, someone’s strong husband.”

 

A few months ago he wouldn’t have thought twice about it. That was how things were; just another way to make them marketable, like the way Kihyun could cook and the way Wonho was covered in shiny muscles. Shownu’s big. That’s nothing new. But… It sounds so wrong.

 

“Hyung is great in a lot of other ways,” He says without thinking through all of his options. Minhyuk signals at him to stop talking to no avail. “He’s got good leadership skills. He is a very strong person internally, and will treat you right. Hyung will always be there for you, he'll always listen. He'll always care.”

 

Minhyuk facepalms internally. The hosts are on the other side of the line, unaware of his panic, but their faces are loud and in Kihyun’s personal space.

 

“If you keep talking like that, people will start to think your heart flutters for Shownu-ssi.” They laugh.

 

The notch between his eyebrows grows as he moves from initial shock to confusion and then to irritation.

 

_How dare you._

 

That’s their baby boy right there, and it’s uncomfortable to see him treated like that, not when they’ve seen him giggle over bubbles, not when they’ve seen him light up just because they’re reading him a story and giving him kisses. Kihyun and Minhyuk are the ones taking care of him because he deserves to be taken care of, because he’s sweet and wholesome and wouldn’t hurt a fly, even if it meant getting hurt himself. And he would never break anyone’s heart, never, because his own is made of soft, pliant gold. Kihyun is an animal when it comes to retribution- Minhyuk’s even worse- but Shownu isn’t like them. He gives freely, unabashedly. He needs to be protected from the ones who would take advantage of that.

 

“Sometimes it does, is it so wrong for a heart to beat faster between two men?”

 

Silence.

 

In the back, all of the camera ops are looking at one another with wide eyes. Soft squeals from young makeup and wardrobe attendants get absorbed into the growing background chatter. It was a mistake to say that.

 

Like it usually was when he opened his big mouth.

 

Hyungwon, by some grace of Jesus, bails him out by doing the Park Jimin (aka conveniently falling with both legs in the air) while on his way over to shush Kihyun. The ruse is supplemented by Wonho’s ‘be careful, don’t hurt yourself before we perform’ and him brushing the imaginary dust off of his best friend with an overly-fond look. Jooheon and I.M decide that now is a fantastic time to flying-koala hug one another. They look absurd, Changkyun sporting his best ‘panicked gay’ face and Jooheon with his mouth fully open. Shownu belts out a noise akin to that of a elephant seal. In the distance, someone drops a lamp. The entire group is a mess. The entire set is a mess. The entire broadcast is a mess. The hosts don’t know what just happened, and now they’re scrambling to do damage control, which Kihyun supposes is the best way this could’ve possibly gone, what a relief. It takes them a full five minutes to get Hyungwon to stop running zig-zags across the stage. It takes another two to get I.M to stop barking.

 

“Just another day in the lives of Monsta X.” They say, slightly out of breath.

 

Minhyuk facepalms externally.

**

When the tapes finally stop whirring, two staff members whisk them away before the hosts have a chance to bark at them for their behavior. Kihyun tries to stay close to Shownu but it’s hard when they’re moving this quickly. His hand rests loosely in the crook of the other man’s elbow, leading him but not pulling.

 

The group practically jogs to the parking garage; flies into the car. Their managers are all on their phones, speaking different languages, no doubt trying to appease the three-piece suits who sign their paychecks. Jooheon receives a congratulations from Jackson Wang and about 15 different Showki fanvideos with commentary that makes it look like his caps lock button is broken. Mingyu from Seventeen sends I.M a video of his entire group running circles in their practice room, screaming at max volume. Kihyun even gets one from Yoongi, busy as BTS may be, with a short ‘Haha pabo, support you anyway’ with a (no doubt fanmade) picture of Kihyun, red cap, overalls, and a sticker mustache, dramatically saving Shownu, who’s in a Princess Peach dress.

 

“You’re a complete idiot, Yoo Kihyun.” Minhyuk mutters, taking his phone back after showing him a stream of twitter comments, courtesy of Astro’s Cha Eunwoo. He gives a hum in response. Those things don’t matter to him. If his words are what’s causing Shownu to stutter and blush every time someone brings up the conversation, it’s well worth it.

**

The Higher-Ups aren’t nearly as mad as Kihyun expected. With the weight of suspense off their shoulders, they’re free to hang out and talk about their favorite moments. It’s worth a good laugh when they get back to the hotel. Eventually Jooheon starts teetering in and out of consciousness and Changkyun takes him back to their room. When Wonho and Hyungwon excuse themselves to go back as well, they all decide to call it a night and instead head back together. The room Shownu and Kihyun have is nice. It’s one of those modern minimalist ones with pretty-looking showers and abstract sinks. It must be expensive, Kihyun thinks, spitting into said abstract-looking sink.

 

“Ki?” From the other room, Shownu is wiping off his makeup, taking off the day’s work.

 

“‘eah?” Only his head pops out of the bathroom, face sideways with a toothbrush sticking out, hand hidden behind the door frame.

 

“Did… when you… on the show today… did you really mean all of those things?”

 

“I say a lot of things, you're going to have to be more specific.”

 

He hears what sounds like the start of a protest, then a quick 'no nevermind, it's doesn't matter’. But it obviously _does_ matter if the way Shownu keeps his arms crossed in front of him, close to his body, is any measure.

 

“Are you talking about when I complimented you? When I said you have other qualities besides being handsome?”

 

The blush itself would have been enough of an answer, but Shownu nods, not looking up.

 

“Well… yeah. I mean, you’re a great leader. You look after all of us so well, keep us out of trouble. Beauty isn't everything and you have a lot to offer besides that.”

 

“Don’t you think…. Aren’t… Am I a burden to you?”

 

Kihyun nearly lobs his toothbrush in surprise, throwing up his hands. Where was this coming from? Had someone said something? Was it Hyungwon? It was definitely Hyungwon. When Kihyun got through with him, Turtle Boy wouldn't even know what hit him--

 

“What?! No! No, you could never-- what happened? Did someone say something?”

 

“No, no one said anything… But ever since I became Little again…. And I just threw that on you when it isn’t your responsibility to be a caregiver.”

 

 _Oh thank goodness._ He breathes out, the worry leaving his body. In the span of two seconds, Kihyun is sitting on the bed, his leader's hands safely in his. “If I didn’t want to be your caregiver, which I do, and which Min also does, then we would’ve found some sort of solution. We could never hate you.”

 

The words don’t convince him. He’s staring off, not disappointed but clearly not pleased. He’s pouting now- he needs something, probably some love, he’s just too scared to ask.

 

“Come on.” He says, patting his thigh. “Come here.”

 

“But I--”

 

“Would you rather stand?”

 

“Well I mean… I don’t… No, not really….”

 

“Then come and sit. It’s ok.”

 

“I’m too big.”

 

“Nonsense! You’re the perfect size for cuddling.”

 

Shownu sits down, not putting his full weight on him out of courtesy. The effort is cute, but not what either of them need now. With a mighty heave, Kihyun pulls upwards and backwards, tossing them onto the bed. The mattress sinks under their weight until it morphs into the outline two bodies pressed together, Shownu now comfortably laying sideways with Kihyun instead of crushing him. It feels cozy with someone’s arms around him. He could stay there forever if the sun wouldn’t rise.

 

The idea of either of them moving to the other bed is tiring, so they they pull the blankets up instead, preferring to stay tangled. After he turns off the lights, Kihyun brushes the hair away so he can press three kisses to Shownu's forehead, soft and sweet.

 

“Goodnight, pumpkin.” he says. The name earns a laugh.

 

“Ki,” he says, voice drawn out, “I'm not Little.”

 

“You may not be Little, but you're still _my_ baby boy.”

 

His head twitches to the side, trying to look but failing with the dark. It's not the answer he was expecting from his caretaker, on duty or not. His eyes are wide with wonder, taking in the words.

 

_His baby boy._

 

Shownu turns so they can properly spoon.

 

“Goodnight, papa.”

 

Kihyun is the big spoon, of course.

**Author's Note:**

> How would you all feel about me doing a CK side arc? 
> 
>  
> 
> To ForeverLost, Mrtve, Doc, Butterfly, and Ronny- thanks for supporting this series!


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